Clearing the Air on Mesh Ergohuman Seats
I wanted to make a post about why certain comments have been made in regards to the leather seat vs. the mesh seat. Many customers have been concerned with going for the mesh seat because of the last post about the leather seat providing a little better support than the mesh for the long haul. I need to clear the air on this issue. If you have owned a mesh chair or are familiar with sitting in mesh, then much of this may not apply to you.
When the Ergohuman first came out, we had 2 mesh chairs shipped to our office so that we could get good, first-hand knowledge about the chair. We used them for about 8-12 hours per day for about 4-5 months before we decided to make the switch to the leather version. The switch was made for 2 reasons: 1) because one of us wanted to sit in the leather model to get more familiar with that style of sit for an extended period. 2) One of us started to experience some discomfort in the tailbone area. The discomfort occurred because the user was not consistent with their sitting posture to benefit fully from the mesh seat. This particular user liked to lean forward in the chair and often times on the armrests. Slouching, awkward leaning and incorrect adjustments can lead to problems. The reason being is that mesh upholstery will flex and cause tension to whatever area is pushed into it. The greater the weight placed on the mesh, the more tension is caused by the rebound effect of the mesh. A mesh seat gets the user’s entire body weight and therefore much more tension is placed on that mesh than mesh on a backrest.
If the chair is adjusted correctly and an ergonomic sitting position is maintained, then the discomfort will not occur. But, the problem comes when users deviate from the upright, correctly aligned position that the Ergohuman chair promotes. When the user slouches, leans drastically to one side or has the chair adjusted incorrectly, then the Ergohuman can’t do its job. Because most users are not conscientious of maintaining a correct posture, we usually recommend the mesh seat for 5 hours or less. If you feel that you sit correctly and can maintain that correct sitting position for the duration of your work day, then the mesh seat would pose no problems. If you’ve had a mesh chair in the past and are familiar with the great qualities of mesh then we definitely recommend the mesh for you as well. But, for users who like to change positions often or lean heavily on the armrests AND will be in the chair for more than 5 hours, then we recommend the leather seat because the stiff leather seat allows more wiggle room when it comes to sitting in a more comfortable position.
The Ergohuman mesh chairs are still the most popular upholstery chosen by our customers and the fact that very few are returned is a true testament to the success and comfort that mesh offers.
June 9th, 2008 at 11:31 am
I can’t find a topic to post this, but I absolutely love my Ergohuma ME7ERG chair. EXCEPT the time it has taken for me to get a warranty replacement for a broken cylinder. My Ergohuman makes it possible for me to get my work done, and I love the mesh. However, having to wait at a minimum of two weeks just to get a replacement cylinder seems outrageous. I’m a little concerned that the chair needed a new cylinder after just one year, but I’m hoping that this is just a fluke and the replacement will last a more reasonable length of time.
I have colleagues that ask me how I like this chair, and the beginning of our fiscal year is around the corner. I’m a little hesitant now to recommend this chair considering the failure of the cylinder and the long time needed to get a replacement. I’m disappointed in Raynor’s turn around time on this.
June 10th, 2008 at 9:16 am
Thank you for your post and I am glad to hear that you like your Ergohuman ME7ERG. It is not so good to hear the troubles you’ve had with getting warranty issues reolved in a timely manner. Did you deal directly with Raynor or did you contact your authorized dealer to work on your behalf?
Raynor is usually very responsive with customer concerns and they usually ship parts out as quickly as the chair was. There may have been an error in communication somewhere or it could have been possible that they were waiting for more cylinders to be in-stock before your part could be shipped.
I would also not be concerned about your cylinder going out. There are a ton of these chairs sold and the percentage that have warranty issues is very small.
June 18th, 2008 at 7:10 am
My authorized dealer specifically told me to deal directly with Raynor. And as I found out in talking with Raynor, my replacement request was in a pile of other things that needed to be done first. The initial request was made over three weeks ago (while my non-functioning chair sits in my office waiting), and I still have not received a cylinder. I was told that by now, a cylinder would have been sent to me. I really have changed my opinion of the company and cannot advise my colleagues to purchase Raynor chairs.
June 18th, 2008 at 8:43 am
I do apologize that Raynor has made you feel as though you’ve been pushed to the side. If you would like me to speak with someone over at Raynor to get the process moving a little quicker, give me a call 952-223-4054. I will see what I can do about about getting a new cylinder shipped out by the end of the week.
June 18th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Ryan, I appreciate your offer. I called Raynor today and they said now that cylinders were back-ordered will not be available until the end of the month! They were very polite and apologetic, but not being able to use this chair for this entire month is really disappointing. Please let me know if you think you can make something happen sooner and I’ll give you a call.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:51 am
I called Raynor this morning to get the status on the cylinders and it looks like the information you received about them not coming in until the end of the month is accurate.
The only other thing I can suggest is asking the dealer you purchased the chair from to try to get the chair swapped for you. Considering your problems thus far, I think you would have a good chance of getting a new chair sent out that is functional for your work. Were we the company you made the purchase through?
June 19th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Unfortunately not, Ryan. However I will contact the dealer that I purchased from and see if they would consider this option. Thanks again.
June 19th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Just to further clarify things, I did not know when I posted this issue to this blog that the blog was not sponsored by Raynor. I did not realize that you were a distributor. However, I am glad that you allowed my somewhat negative posts about the product to be displayed. Many dealers and manufacturers would hide such comments from the public. Nice work.